An American Legend: The Wild West

Compiled by Valerie A. Peters

And since its beginnings in 1866, Winchester has sustained the romance and legacy of its remarkable heritage as an American original. Winchester firearms accompanied American settlers as they moved west to seek their fortunes in a virgin land. Winchester's image became one with that of the cowboy, the Indian, the lawman, the pioneer, the mesa, the mountains, the desert, and the grandeur of the west. Small wonder that Winchester is called "The American Legend." The famous horse and rider logo used by Winchester on its products symbolizes that legacy.

Winchester owes its fame to many sources. However, one man did much to spread the fame of the Winchester firearm more than any other -- Buffalo Bill. While Buffalo Bill was never employed as a shooter by Winchester to publicize the company's products, he directly and indirectly did much to increase the company's exposure. As the hero of fictionalized Western dime novels, he was often armed by the authors with a Winchester rifle in his fights with the Indians and the bad guys. In the famous Wild West Show, he and his fellow marksmen, including Annie Oakley, used Winchester rifles and ammunition. The Winchester Repeating Arms Company did not fail to publicize the fact that its products were the choice of Buffalo Bill and his fellow star performers. Theodore Roosevelt was another one of the famous folks that used Winchester products and publicized that fact.